JACKSONVILLE – Look-Ahead Wednesday.
Let's get to it …
Tony from Johns Creek, GA
O, it appears to me that the offense plays better at a faster pace. With this in mind, why not go up-tempo the entire game?
I have received multiple versions of this question this week, with the Jaguars' slow starts defining the 2024 season – and this actually has been an issue since Doug Pederson took over as head coach in 2022. But playing "tempo" or "no-huddle" for an entire game is trickier than it sounds. First, you're often not working your entire playbook when you take that route because you must simplify the offense and run from a lot of base looks. You're also not able to get personnel in and out of the game. Perhaps the biggest reason is the risk involved. If you go "tempo" and go three-and-out with three quick passes, you're putting your defense back out on the field very quickly. It's also hard to go no-huddle if you throw incomplete or lose yardage on first down. You can wind up punting or otherwise giving up the ball very quickly if you're not successful – and the approach can have the opposite of the desired effect.
Andrew from Argyle
How long until we can accept that Lawrence is not an elite quarterback? I'm tired of "he's not playing elite ... yet." Four years in and he's making us look bad for paying him.
I don't know who "we" or "us" is, exactly – but I suppose any group can "accept" whatever they like. Either way, the Jaguars don't regret extending quarterback Trevor Lawrence's contract this past offseason. Lawrence isn't elite yet. That doesn't mean he won't ever be elite.
Brian from Jax
So, at the beginning of the season it seems we were romance by life's rich pageant. Now, a reckoning is at hand. Since it appears to be fables of the reconstruction, leadership is out of time. The season has turned into a real monster. In order for things to become green, don't things have to be turned inside out?
Whatever happens, I'll be here to document it.
Kathy from Palm Coast, FL
I am trying to understand why we come out of the locker room flat and dead in the first half. Then we come out in the second half alive and with some hustle. If we were more alive in the first half we might have won more games. Our D is looking somewhat better but our offense is just awful.
The Jaguars are trying to figure the reason for the slow starts, too. The defense looked better Sunda in a loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. It didn't look very good the previous week. The Jaguars' offense actually has been really good late in games lately. For what it's worth.
Jake from Cary, NC
Who do you think is more important to establishing a winning culture at an NFL franchise: the head coach or the starting QB?
Yes.
Marcus from Jacksonville
You're right that mid-season coaching changes rarely produce a long-term positive impact. My question is, does keeping a lameduck coach produce a long-term positive impact? It kind of seems like a lose/lose situation, but if you're in the middle of the season and you know you're going to fire a guy, why wait?
Because you don't necessarily know for sure you're going to fire a head coach. Just because fans believe something, and just because there's a "consensus," doesn't make something inevitable.
Jordan from Mandarin
I use to think the notion of fans knowing better than coaches about the roster was ridiculous. This season is making me reconsider.
OK.
Tim from Virginia Beach, VA
Three observations; 1) Jaguars Owner Shad Khan will not fire Doug during the season. Generally, a fired head coach is replaced by either the offensive or defensive coordinator and those two are the reason that this team sucks as bad as they do. 2) The downward spiral coincided with the elevation of Press Taylor to play-caller. 3) Jaguars.com is spending way too much time trying to make excuses for Trevor. He is not and will not be an above average quarterback. Injuries are no excuse or acceptable reason for his poor development. Kansas City has suffered more injuries at key positions than almost any other team in the NFL, yet they just keep winning. Responses please.
One, I expect Pederson to finish the season, but interim head coaches can come from many staff positions and often do. Two, Jaguars offensive coordinator Press Taylor called plays in the second halves of games during the 2022 AFC South-championship season and throughout games in 2023, with the Jaguars starting that season 8-3. Three, I don't know how to make excuses and I'm not even sure I know the definition anymore – and I'm sure many readers don't. I do know how to answer questions and discuss Jaguars-related topics on this free website, and I know that Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is on his way to being an all-time elite player.
Meyer from Duval
We are at the Urban stage of Doug's coaching arc. Why wasn't tight end Brenton Strange involved? Why not throw to wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr.? We have to figure that out. You see that card, too – and got that radio. Say: "Throw it to BTJ and put Strange in." There are no answers for this team from the people running the club.
Coaches rarely have good answers after losses. There's not much to say and less that fans want to hear. I can't in good conscience compare the tenure of a coach with two winning seasons and a division title to the tenure of former Jaguars Head Coach Urban Meyer.
Sal from Austin, TX
Nakobe Dean is the 2021 Butkus Award winner for the nation's best college linebacker. While college accolades don't always translate to the NFL, Doug Pederson referred to him as "No. 17," and Lawrence referred to him as "their linebacker." Great preparation. They know his name now.
This isn't a thing. It's common for NFL coaches to refer to opponents by number because this is the verbiage used in meetings and preparation. The Jaguars knew Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean's name before this past Sunday's game, and Lawrence said his name following the game when discussing the play.
John from Hopkins, MN
What's there to cheer for at this point, John? There's just always one glaring thing game to game that holds us back from being a 4~ win team vs being 2-7 now when I believed we would be better than we are currently.
The Jaguars' 2-7 record is disappointing and has given this season a lifeless feel for many fans. What's there to cheer for? Not much, frankly. It has been that kind of season.
JK from NY & Fernandina Beach, FL
John - The Jaguars' defense does not attack the ball with urgency and intensity. There always seems to be massive holes blown through the line and open receivers down field. Do you think this is because several of the Jags' "star" players are thinking about spending their new overly generous multi-year salaries rather than thinking about how they can pursue the ball faster and stop big plays?
I assume you're asking if Jaguars defensive end Josh Hines-Allen and cornerback Tyson Campbell are more concerned with their money than playing football. I do not remotely think that.
David from Broward County, FL
Mr. Khan is a great owner in the sense of securing the Jaguars' future in Jacksonville with the new stadium deal. That is huge and he deserves full credit for that. But he is a horrible owner, the worst in the NFL since he bought the Jags in the results on the field and his horrible, terrible, horrendous football operations decisions. I have been a Jags fan since before 11/30/1993 and season ticket holder from 12/1993 till 2012. NFL Sunday Ticket holder and watcher of every Jags game. I no longer care and Khan's horrible football operations decisions have done that to me and other loyal Jags fans. There is ZERO hope that things will improve. That is the state of the Jags under Mr. Khan. Thoughts?
The Jaguars haven't won enough since Khan bought the team in 2012. They have had many double-digit loss seasons and appeared headed for another. When teams lose that much, everything will get criticized. That includes ownership. That doesn't make the criticism necessarily correct, but it's hard to change that perception.
Rich from Dacula, GA
AH, it's obvious what the plan has been all along and we just didn't see it. The new stadium grand opening is the target to have this team performing at an elite level. So, if we dump this season and pick up some real quality players, we'll be ready in time to show the world the new Jaguars that we can all be proud of. Right now, we are drafting in the Top 5. It was a three-year plan again that we all missed. Less just reset our minds now that it's been revealed.
That's not it.
